Just noticed the celebrating 13 years notice. Thought this was funny as today is our wedding anniversary and we're celebrating 13 years together. Hope everything goes well with the new site and everyone has a great Halloween, I'll be using the Harry Potter patterns as my daughter has just got into the books.

Wow, chuck monumental go at the new guy who doesn't know how long things take round here with the release date coinciding with the busy season!" ..ie old hands like yourself know the staggered release as you partake here frequently over the years, but how about LOOKING at the post number for the guy & think a bit before lambasting the person, especially in light of the gallery only really taking "staged" shots now I can understand the issue from the perspective of a site user who has put time into jumping through the hoops for submission (if folk really must).

SO ryan wants constructive critique yes!? ...however a whole subsection of you folk wish to shoot a guy down for posing their dilemma!? ..get a grip, don't shoot them down.

It is precisely this clique that shames the place at times, & anything deemed a slur on ryan's name is treated in the manner of a personal attack.

Various aspects of this sites respawning are seemingly held in stasis or on a seemingly permanent hold, if you don't know you ask, start a thread, the point of discussion, the guy was polite, & his dilemma fitted with the situation & thread.

Some people seem to take this "minion" thing too far at times, more like a cult than a bit of fun.

I encountered the same, & pretty much walked, I would completely understand the posters disdain towards some of you with the untoward remarks, it's not like he was a spammer, hawking ryan's unique creations elsewhere etc etc..

I'm SO ASHAMED of you band-wagoners at times.
Friendly forum, pumpkins, just pumpkins, please adjust your outlook accordingly & remember that subsection..
(4th on down from the top of the list) ..like many users sometimes a thread opens up that runs concurrent & that is why I guess the poster said what they did on the thread.

Based on previous experience though, some of you would have shot him down for perceived "antagonistic" views even if it was in the correct section.

GUS... I think we pretty much moved on from this debate already. I can appreciate your point of view, but if you're saying that one of the forum members was wrong for "lambasting" another, your comments might be interpreted as the same thing, for literally "shaming" another member.

I'll just say... newer members to the site may have concerns, and their requests/criticisms are totally valid. At the same time, long time members may be eager to explain their knowledge of the site, which may seem overly protective. But both sides can agree on one thing. We're talking about the betterment of this website, and our community, and our Halloween pumpkin craft. I think ultimately we want the same thing.

In the interest of staying on topic (this thread being about the new Coven website), do you have opinions on the look and function of the site? I pulled this bit from your post...

GUS wrote:the gallery only really taking "staged" shots now... a site user who has put time into jumping through the hoops for submission

I value every photo submitted, and save them all. I know that every person who took the time to upload a photo must be proud of their carving accomplishment, and rightfully so. Unfortunately, I receive thousands of photos, and can't display them all on the site (nobody would ever scroll through that many).

So if I can only choose a select few, wouldn't it make sense to chose the most impressive photography and staging? In a contest format, that seems logical. Plus I think the general audience would find these photos the most interesting to look at too. I regret that less elaborate photos don't get featured, but at least we have the Carving PHOTOS & STORIES where anyone can proudly show their work and talk about it.

The site looks great! I always say it but it's pretty amazing to redo the site every year. That is a ton of work but it keeps the site fully functional.

The patterns have all be excellent so far. I love your style and the whole ZP experience, but if you want some complaints ...

More originals! And keep the light coming. I love that many of your patterns are really open and the pumpkins glow like mad!

I too like the galleries and want to see them back on the site. I don't want to scroll through hundreds of the same photo. I like the limited galleries, but maybe in the future you could add a view all submissions button.

I love this year's theme and mascot, and I dig the color scheme. I like when it's drastically different and fresh year-to-year. The patterns are enough on their own, being that they're the reason we all come here, but a complete redesign every year is colorful and exciting icing on the cake.

I definitely miss some of the more creative elements of the site shell and navigation, but understand completely that many of these facets have to be lost when building a responsive site. I know from experience that building a responsive site is a serious pain (especially when you are a meticulous, detail oriented person). Ultimately, it's definitely a worthy sacrifice and a better business decision. Multi-device functionality is far more important than artistic intricacy at this juncture in time.

So, while I'll miss blinky eyes and flickery things and interactive mascots and navigation in the same font as the newest logo variant, I appreciate that the site is infinitely more accessible and functional, at least until the technology completely changes again (so, two years max ).

mesmark wrote:The site looks great! I always say it but it's pretty amazing to redo the site every year. That is a ton of work but it keeps the site fully functional.

The patterns have all be excellent so far. I love your style and the whole ZP experience, but if you want some complaints ...

More originals! And keep the light coming. I love that many of your patterns are really open and the pumpkins glow like mad!

I too like the galleries and want to see them back on the site. I don't want to scroll through hundreds of the same photo. I like the limited galleries, but maybe in the future you could add a view all submissions button.